Despised
by eaglefan101
Summary: A controversy in the Warner family. One lonely house. Has it really been five years since...? It still feels like it happened yesterday... Maybe if he had told them what was going on... Please read and review :D
1. Chapter 1: Five Years

_Hey all!_

_If you are reading this, then I assume you are one of two people; someone who is generally interested in this new fic, or someone who is wondering when the hell I'll ever finish my other fic, Secret of the Coopers. Well, I don't really want to get into the details of the latter. Let's just say that I lost interest in it and leave it at that. I might finish it one day, but to be honest, I don't know._

_Anyways, I decided to write this fic after reading numerous Animaniacs fanfics. Hopefully it won't bore you to death. Before you read, allow me to warn you. This fic is rated T for a reason. If you'd rather read a fic about pink fuzzy bunnies, I suggest you look elsewhere. This ain't going to be the happiest story. With that said, I present to you my newest fic; Despised_

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**Chapter 1: Five Years**

_Five years... Five long years..._

Yakko sat in his armchair, staring at the television that wasn't even on. He grabbed his glass off of the coffee table and took a swig. The strong alcohol burned as it traveled down his throat. He never thought that he would ever end up as a drinker. While he was younger, he swore off alcohol for life. He knew what the stuff did to people. It was, after all, drilled into his brain while he was working for Warner Brothers. They were quite strict about underage drinking, and Yakko respected their wishes. After all, they let him and his siblings live there for almost 6 years, and they even paid them for it. The least he could do was obey the rules the studio had laid out for them.

And yet, here he was, sipping down his third glass of whiskey, thinking. To be honest, he didn't even care for the taste of the liquid. In fact, it made him gag with each sip. He hated the taste, the smell, the effects... So why did he drink it?

He didn't want to answer that question.

_Five years..._

He took his last sip of the drink, and set the glass back down on the coffee table. He continued to stare at the television for several minutes. Finally, he decided that turning it on might take his mind off of things. He reached for the remote and hit the on button, and the screen lit up. He watched as the news channel talked about a recent murder in San Francisco. He shuddered, and quickly changed the channel. He flipped through many channels. After a few minutes of channel surfing, he decided that there wasn't anything on the tube that was worth watching. He turned off the television and returned to staring at a blank screen.

Yakko sighed and threw his head back on the armchair, closing his eyes. Maybe if he fell asleep he could momentarily forget about his current situation. No... that wouldn't work. Every night, he would have a brand new nightmare to look forward to. He was worried that his dreams would eventually drive him crazy. Yakko finally got out of the armchair and looked around his apartment, trying to find something... anything to distract him. His eyes fell on his half empty pack of cigarettes.

_Drinking and smoking. Oh if fans of Animaniacs could see me now..._

Yakko shrugged at his thoughts and grabbed a cigarette out of the pack. It's not like he cared what anyone thought of him. Well... not anymore at least.

_Five years... Five lonely years..._

Yakko shook his head, trying to still his thoughts. He brought the cigarette up to his mouth and lit it. He knew smoking wasn't healthy, but damn if it didn't help him feel better. It took the edge off. Yakko walked around the living room looking at various objects in the room. The clock on the wall read 10:37 PM. Yakko wished it wasn't the weekend. He didn't work weekends, and he would love to be distracted by work. Maybe he wouldn't think about them so much...

Yakko took another drag of his cigarette.

Yakko walked up to the cabinet which held the TV. He opened up the doors on the bottom, hoping to find a movie to watch. He had a decent collection, mostly of comedies and a few cartoon shows. He ran his finger over the Looney Tunes DVD. He considered watching it. After all, he could use a few laughs. Yakko continued to search through the collection, looking to see if he could spot something better. His heart skipped a beat as his eyes glanced over a certain group of DVDs. All three volumes of the Animaniacs cartoon show.

Yakko raised an eyebrow and put out the cigarette in an ashtray. He knew watching them would only make him feel worse. He knew it would do nothing but remind him of why he was so depressed. Still, he always did smile while watching the cartoons. While it reminded him of his loneliness, it also reminded him of the good old days when they were still filming the show. Yakko smiled and put the Looney Tunes DVD back on the shelf. As he did so, he grabbed all three volumes of the show. He looked at all three of them separately, wondering which one he should put in first.

The sound of a doorbell made Yakko jump and drop the DVDs. He walked over to the front door and opened it. He smiled at the blue and pink bunnies standing on his doorstep.

"Buster? Babs? What are you doing here?" Yakko asked.

"Hey Yak, what's up?" Buster said.

"Er, not much." Yakko scratched the back of his neck. "So how've you two been? I haven't seen you since I came up a month ago!" Babs smiled.

"We've been good," she said. "L.A. started to get boring. We decided to come surprise you with a visit. We actually got into Burbank about twenty minutes ago."

"Come on in, I'll grab some drinks!" Yakko led them into the apartment, and directed them to the couch in the living room. He walked into the kitchen and headed over to the fridge. He was happy that Babs and Buster decided to show up. He could use some company right now. He just hoped they wouldn't want to talk about... uh oh.

_Damn it, the DVDs!_

Yakko smacked himself on the head. He had left the Animaniacs DVDs out on the floor. It was far too late for him to grab them, he was sure that Buster and Babs had already seen them. He sincerely hoped that they wouldn't say much about it. Yakko calmed down and grabbed three beers. He walked into the living room, just catching Babs and Buster looking at the DVD's, while sitting on the couch.

_Damn._

Buster and Babs immediately turned their heads away when they noticed Yakko was there. He handed them the beers and sat down on his armchair, trying not to eye the DVD's on the floor. Buster was the first to break the silence.

"So how's it been Yakko? Anything new?"

"Eh, not much," Yakko replied. "Been getting pretty bored with the same routine everyday."

"Those kids still haven't gotten sick of you huh?" Buster laughed at his own comment.

"I happen to be one of the best Toon Tutors in Burbank, thank you very much," Yakko said with a grin on his face.

"We'll be sure to send our kids straight to you professor," Babs said with a sarcastic tone, as Buster nearly choked on his beer. Babs shot a look at Buster. "What?"

"Er... *cough* nothing." Yakko struggled to keep from laughing.

"What? Still afraid of commitment?" Yakko joked.

"Bite me," Buster said. Yakko chuckled. This was proving to be some quality distraction. He was thankful that they had come over to his apartment. He wasn't able to keep in touch with all of his old cast mates. Who knew where they were now. The only people that he really could call close friends were some of the crew from Tiny Toons, including Buster and Babs. Yakko broke from his thoughts as he noticed that Babs was looking at the DVDs again. The look on her face told Yakko that Buster and Babs wanted to say something. Yakko sighed.

"So what do you really want to talk about?" Yakko asked seriously, even though he already knew the answer. Babs quickly turned away from the DVDs to look at Yakko. There was a small moment of silence before anyone else spoke.

"Well..." Buster began. He fumbled with his words. "It's about... your brother and sister..." Yakko looked down at the floor.

_Fuck._

"What about them?" Yakko asked with an emotionless voice.

"Well... it's just that... we noticed the DVDs," Buster answered. Yakko tried not to snort.

"I figured."

"And well..." There was a short pause in Babs's voice. "We kinda know what day it is today."

"Saturday?" Yakko joked without humor. Babs brought her hand to her face.

"Yakko you know exactly what I'm talking about." He did. He just didn't her to talk about it. Oh if only there was a nice way to tell someone politely to mind their own business. Yakko rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Look, I'd really rather not talk about this..."

"Yakko please," Buster pleaded. "It's been five years man. We really want to know what happened... and where they went."

"I don't know where they went. Please guys, I really don't want to talk about this." Yakko rested his arms on his knees and closed his eyes. Maybe if he couldn't see them, they would go away. There was another long bout of silence before Babs jumped in.

"Yakko... I know it's hard but it's been five years and you're still the only one who really knows why they left. What happened? Did you get into a fight with them? Did they go out to live on their own? Did..."

"I said I don't fucking want to talk about this now drop it!" Yakko's shout boomed within the apartment. Buster jumped in shock. Babs had her jaw wide open. Yakko took a big breath. It had been a while since he lost his temper like that, and he knew they didn't deserve it. "Sorry... just please. Either change the subject or leave." Yakko buried his face in his hands. Buster and Babs looked at each other. They had a compassionate look on their face.

"Sorry," Buster said quietly. "Look we'll come back tomorrow okay? We're staying at that Hotel a few blocks down. You still have my number right?" Yakko nodded, still not looking at either of them. "Call me whenever you feel like talking." He got up from the couch. "C'mon Babs." The two bunnies headed towards the door and waved their goodbyes. Yakko didn't move from his position for a good ten minutes. Why the hell did he flip out like that? Damn it, they're probably pissed at him now. And he's already made enough people pissed off at him for one life time.

He looked up at the clock again, now reading 11:09 PM. Damn it. Might as well try to go to sleep. He walked into his bedroom and turned on the lamp that sat on his nightstand. He sat down on the bed, trying to gather his thoughts. It had been a while since Buster and Babs had tried to talk to him about his siblings. He was hoping that they had gotten the hint last time. Well if they didn't then, they sure as hell had now. He didn't remember a time where he actually yelled at his friends. His family, but not his friends.

Yakko sighed and looked at the top drawer of his nightstand. Every year, on this day, he had the same routine when going to bed. He had hoped that he would grow out of the habit eventually. He opened the top drawer and moved around various items to find a piece of folded lined paper. Through it, Yakko could see writing. He held the paper in his hands for a few seconds, and then finally unfolded it. It was a note, written in very messy handwriting.

_Yakko,_

_This will probably be the hardest note I'll ever have to write. Dot couldn't bring herself to do it. As you can tell, Dot and I have left. We're not sure when we will be back, or even if we will be back. Bottom line, we've had enough. Just because you hold the title of "Big Brother" does not give you the right to try and run our lives. You never gave us freedom, you never gave us support, and you never gave a shit about what we want. I'm sorry, but I can't live my life with someone like that anymore. What's happened to you man? This isn't the Yakko I used to know and love. This isn't the Yakko that me and Dot would fool around with or get advice from. No. The new Yakko is cold, distant, and quiet. Every time we tried talking to you to see what was wrong, you always changed the subject, or just plain ignored us. I don't know what happened to turn you into the person you are now, but whatever it is, you need to get it sorted out. You need some time to yourself so you can find the old you again. Until you do, we won't be there to get yelled at or be ignored. Please understand that me and Dot think this is for the best, for both you and us._

_-Wakko_

Yakko blinked back the tears that struggled to pour out of his eyes. He folded the paper back up and put it in the drawer. He got situated in his bed and shut off the lamp, hoping to get some sleep tonight.

_Five years... Five fucking years..._

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_Phew! Done with the first chapter. I like how it came out, and I hope you've enjoyed it. I don't exactly know where this fic will be going. Well, I kind of have a rough idea of what I want, but it needs a lot of work. If the reviews are good and plentiful, I will work my hardest to get chapters out as soon as possible. Needless to say, College is almost upon me, so who knows what kind of work I'll be doing while that's going on. Nevertheless, I will try to spend as much time as possible on this story. And who knows, maybe one day I'll finish Secret of the Coopers..._

_Until next chapter folks!_

_-eaglefan101_


	2. Chapter 2: Hate?

_Second chapter!_

_**(KIND OF) IMPORTANT NOTE:**_

_I changed something in the last chapter. It's kind of minor, but I felt it needed to be done. Basically, I changed Yakko's job slightly. He's a toon tutor, but he doesn't work for WB studio. That is all._

_So yeah. I was slightly disappointed with the lack of reviews on this fic, but eh. Kind of expected it. Maybe if I change the summary people will be more interested. I'll wait until this fic gets further in before I decide to write a different summary though. I was hoping that the lack of information about the story would get people interested, but I guess I was wrong. Oh well._

_Enough talking! On to Chapter 2!_

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**Chapter 2: Hate?**

The sun shined brightly through the windows, waking him up. As he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, he looked over to the clock on the nightstand, which read 8:35. He sighed as he threw himself back onto the pillows. He was hoping to sleep in today. He had quite an emotionally taxing day yesterday. Understandable considering what day it was. After failing to fall back asleep, he finally sat up. He started to get out of bed, when he heard a knocking at his door.

"Come in," he said. The door opened revealing a twenty year old Dot.

"Didn't think you'd be awake this early," Dot commented. Wakko frowned slightly.

"Just because I'm lazy doesn't mean I can't wake up early." Dot chuckled at that. "So what is it?"

"Well, I'll be leaving in an hour, and since you love me so much, I thought you'd cook me some breakfast!" Dot smiled innocently. Wakko laughed.

"You thought wrong sis."

"Aw, come on. Please?" Crap. She was doing it again. The look. Just don't look into her eyes. If he couldn't see her, it couldn't affect him. Even after fifteen years of her doing it, it still worked on him. He took a look at her to see if she still had that look on her face.

Unfortunately, she did.

Wakko sighed and said, "Oh, alright. C'mon." Dot smiled at her brother.

"I knew you would cave," she said.

"Y'know, you shouldn't be allowed to do that. It's like, cheating." Dot grinned. Wakko walked into the kitchen, followed by Dot. He was quite skilled at cooking, and it had even landed him a job as a head cook of a restaurant. Between that and Dot's job, they were able to live quite comfortable lives. Their house wasn't anything special, but it was cozy, and had just enough room for both him and Dot. Wakko headed into the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

Dot nodded him a thanks as he handed her a plate of french toast. He took his own plate and sat down.

"You said you had to leave soon," Wakko told his sister. "Where are you going?" Dot looked up from her food.

"Another photo shoot, this time for a magazine ad." Wakko smiled at his sister. For some reason, he wasn't at all surprised when Dot had told him a few months ago that she wanted to become a model. It was no secret that Dot loved attention, and modeling seemed like the perfect job for her.

"Any idea when that other photo will show up?" he asked. Dot shook her head.

"No idea. It's been a few weeks since that happened. You'd figure that it would be released in just a few days."

"It's supposed to be on the front page of a magazine right?" Dot nodded. Wakko could tell she was excited for that, even though Dot tried her hardest to cover it up. To be honest, Wakko was fairly excited too. It had been quite a while since the Warners were in any kinds of papers, besides the occasional tabloid article every so often.

For a split second, Wakko scowled. He hated tabloids. Probably because he himself was a star once, and knows what it's like to be in tabloids. Whether or not the stories were true, it was clear to Wakko that the magazine companies did not care about the star. They cared about magazine sales. He was still trying to forget some of the more anger inducing articles. But there was one article that no matter how hard he tried, he would never forget about it. Hell, he could still remember the headline.

_HATE BREWS IN THE WARNER FAMILY_

Wakko had long since trashed his copy of the article, but he had read it enough times to memorize what it said. His brother didn't really hate him, did he?

After some thought, Wakko concluded that after what he and Dot did, his brother probably did hate them. Maybe that's a bit of a harsh assumption, and Wakko tried to push that thought out of his head. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't shake that worry out of him. The thought that his own brother could very well hate him...

"Wakko! You awake?"

Dot snapped Wakko out of his thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, sorry. Zoned out there for a sec."

"Typical Wakko," Dot commented as she rolled her eyes. "What's wrong anyways? You don't look very cheerful." Wakko sighed. They hadn't mentioned their brother at all yesterday. In fact, they didn't say much of anything yesterday. They were pretty reserved to themselves.

"Well... You know what yesterday was... right?" Dot's optimistic face immediately changed. She frowned and looked intently at her empty plate.

"Yeah..." she answered quietly. She chuckled in spite of the topic. "Amazing how we haven't brought it up until just now." Wakko looked at Dot.

"Well it wasn't like it was hard to avoid the subject," he explained. "We barely talked to each other at all."

"Yeah I know." Dot continued to look at her plate. "How do you think he's doing?" Wakko scratched his head in thought.

"I dunno. Probably still teaching kids how to use their toon powers. Hope he's doing alright."

"You think he still lives in Burbank?" Wakko grinned.

"Wouldn't doubt it. He wasn't really into big changes." Dot snorted.

"Until he changed himself." Wakko opened his mouth to say something, but could not find the right words. Dot looked at him with a serious expression on her face. "Have you ever thought about going back?"

The room went silent for a moment before Wakko answered her question.

"I've been thinking of going back since the day we left. But..." Wakko trailed off. He didn't know how to say it. Would Dot understand? Would he understand it himself? "Well... I guess I'm... kinda scared to go back.." Dot widened her eyes.

"Why?" Wakko took in a deep breath.

"Because I'm afraid I'll find out that he hates me." After seeing the look on Dot's face, he felt that he should explain it to her. "I'm not going to lie. I miss him. Terribly. I've missed him ever since he changed. But, that note I wrote him... How do you think that affected him?" Dot shrugged. "For some reason, I keep thinking that the note caused him to hate us for what we did. He loved us, and he did everything for us. I feel like I stabbed him in the back by leaving." Wakko said no more. He brought his hand up to the bridge of his nose, breathing heavily. No one said anything for a few minutes.

"The way I look at it," Dot finally said, "is that while we may not have seen him in five years, he's still our brother. We spent almost our whole lives together, and somehow I doubt that one little spat is going to make him hate us."

"You call that a little spat?" Dot shrugged once again.

"Either way, I know that he could never hate us." Wakko shook his head, unsure of Dot's words.

"Maybe the old Yakko could never hate us but..." Wakko brought his hands to his face. "I'd just like to know what happened to him all those years ago. I mean, it was like it happened overnight. One day he was Yakko, and the next... I dunno. He just wasn't the same. And he treated us differently."

"I know Wakko, but whatever it was, it's probably passed now."

"Even if it has, that doesn't mean he's changed back into the old Yakko. We left, remember? I'm sure that had a huge effect on him." Dot had no rebuttal. Instead of continuing the conversation, she got up and placed her plate in the sink. She yawned and looked at her watch.

"Well," she began. "I should probably go now. Can't be late for this." Wakko nodded. She grabbed her keys off of the counter and headed out the door. "See ya when I get back!" she shouted towards Wakko. He waved his hand goodbye, and placed his plate in the sink on top of Dot's. He walked into the living room and threw himself down on the couch.

Maybe Dot was right. Maybe he was being too hard on himself. Sure, Yakko most likely missed him and Dot, but that didn't mean he didn't hate them for what they did. Wakko knew he would give anything to see his brother again. He just didn't know if Yakko would want him to.

-

_Ngh... head. Shit._

Those were Yakko's first thoughts as he woke up. He opened his eyes, only to close them tightly as the sun shone through his window. He pulled the covers over his head and groaned.

The hangover. One of the many disadvantages to drinking, and one of the many reasons that Yakko desperately wanted to stop. Some people get them worse than others, and apparently Yakko was one of them. His head throbbed, each pulse bringing extreme pain. He nearly gagged at the taste in his mouth, and his stomach made him feel like he had food poisoning.

Finally, Yakko pulled off the covers and slowly sat up in the bed. He held his head, hoping that it would somehow dull the pain. He hoped he had some aspirin in the kitchen somewhere. He stood up, rubbing his eyes and groaning in pain. He made his way over to the kitchen and looked through the cabinet by the fridge.

_Come on, where is it?_

After a bit of searching, he found what he was looking for. He grabbed the bottle and opened it, taking out 4 pills. Hoping it wasn't overkill, he took them. He glanced over to the clock, telling him that it was past noon. Yakko shook his head. He needed to start getting up earlier on the weekends. He had enough trouble doing it on the weekdays.

As he sat down on his armchair in the living room, he started to piece together what had happened last night. His memories were a bit hazy, as he was fairly drunk, but he remembered the conversation he had with Buster and Babs. He sighed.

He had been a prick to them, and he knew it. They didn't deserve it either. All they wanted was to know what had happened with his brother and sister. However, that wasn't what Yakko was worried about. He was more worried that they would ask what happened to cause him to change.

_That phone call..._

Yakko shook his head. That was five years ago. Nothing had happened yet, at least he hoped. He figured that it had blown over and whoever was on the phone was just some crazy guy trying to get a few laughs.

But it wasn't funny. Not one bit.

He didn't want to think about that. At least, not right now. His thoughts went back to Buster and Babs. They had a right to know. They were good friends with Wakko and Dot, and they missed them almost as much as Yakko did. He remembered what Buster had said to him before he left. Yakko finally decided what he was going to do.

He pulled out his cell phone and went through his contacts until he hit Buster's name. He hesitated before pressing the send button. He didn't want to go into too much detail, but he figured that telling them why they left would stop the questions. If they asked what had happened to Yakko, well, a little white lie wouldn't hurt. After a few seconds, a raspy voice came through the phone.

_"Hey Yakko!"_ Buster said.

"Hey Buster."

_"You don't sound too good man. You okay?"_

"A little hungover, but I'll be alright. Listen... do you think you and Babs could come over for a bit? I wanna talk to you guys personally."

_"Sure man, we'll be over in a few minutes. What's it about?" _

"I'll tell you when you get here."

_"Okay. See you soon."_

Yakko closed the phone and put it back into his pocket. He squinted his eyes in pain as the throbbing in his head continued. He looked over at his pack of cigarettes on the coffee table and took one out.

Even while hungover, there was just no taste like the first cigarette of the day.

-

"So, is this about what I think it's about?" Babs asked.

They all sat down in the living room. Yakko hesitated. Damn, they were perceptive. He started having second thoughts about telling them, but it was too late now. He still didn't want to talk about it, but they had a right to know.

"Yeah. Just, try not to interrupt me please. It'll be easier for me." The two bunnies nodded. With a deep breath, he began. "When the show ended, not much changed between us. We were still the Warner Brothers, and the Warner Sister. We were close, and we always screwed around and caused trouble. After the studio had kicked us out of the tower, we got this apartment. We all got jobs to help pay the rent. Nothing too big, but enough to keep us going. And even with all of that going on, we never changed. We still had the same bond for 5 or 6 years. Then, something happened."

"What do you mean?" Babs asked. This was it. This was what Yakko was waiting for. He had already practiced what he was going to tell him. He wouldn't be lying, he just wouldn't go into detail.

"I changed. I started to get more protective of them. I worried about them more than I should have. It got to the point where I stopped them from leaving the house as often as they used to. Every time they would come home, I'd ask where they've been, what they've been doing, who they've been hanging out with. I was worried that something would happen to them."

"Why though?" Babs interrupted. "I mean, you know they can handle themselves. Where did all that worry spawn from?" Yakko grew silent. Crap, maybe he would have to lie.

"Well... I'm not really sure. Maturity? Experience? Whatever it was, it was a change that Wakko and Dot did not like. Slowly, we began to grow apart. We would constantly argue or fight about something. Not even big things, just stupid little arguments over nothing. They would try to talk to me about the way I was acting, and I would avoid those conversations. Wakko wanted to be a cook. I never showed him any encouragement. It went on for a month." Yakko took in a deep breath before continuing. "Then, I got home from work one day. They weren't here." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of lined paper. "They left me this note." He handed it to Buster. He and Babs quickly read over it, looking sympathetic as they did so.

"They never told you where they went?" Babs asked quietly. Yakko shook his head. She looked at the note, going over it again. "I'm sorry Yakko," she said sadly. Yakko looked over to the Animaniacs DVDs, still laying on the floor of his living room. He stared at them before speaking.

"I am too," he replied.

"Have you ever tried to look for them?" Buster asked.

"No. I don't think they would want to see me anyways."

"And how do you know that?" Yakko didn't answer Buster. True, he didn't know if his siblings still hated him, but it was a safe assumption. "Hell, even if that was true, it couldn't hurt to see them again." Yakko shook his head. Bullshit. It could hurt quite a lot. It just depends on what his sibs said to him.

"How the hell would I be able to find them? I don't even know if they're still in California." Buster said nothing. How would he be able to find them? It wasn't like they were high profile stars anymore, and that made it kind of hard to keep track of them. Babs ended the silence.

"Something will come up eventually Yakko. You can't just go on with your life thinking you're never going to see them again. Just keep hoping. You'll find them." Yakko smiled at her.

"Thanks Babs."

After Buster and Babs had left, Yakko was alone in his thoughts. He thought about what Buster had said. He was right. Even if Wakko and Dot chewed Yakko out, nothing would make him happier than if he saw them again. He wanted to talk to them. He wanted to tell them what had happened to him. It's been long enough, and he wanted them to know why he was being so protective and strict. Even if it turned out to be nothing in the long run, assuming that nothing had happened to them. Yakko shuddered at that thought. He had to stop thinking like that. It was thoughts like those that brought him to this situation. Yakko eyed the DVDs on the ground. He had forgotten about them the night before. He picked up the first volume, placed the first disc into the DVD player, and hit play on the remote.

_It's time for Animaniacs…_

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_Phew! Chapter 2 is done!_

_A lot longer than I anticipated. Overall, I'm fairly pleased with how it came out. I think it could have been a bit better though. Ah well. I'm just glad it's finally done._

_I'm really hoping that this story gets more traffic. I've got some really good ideas for this story, and I'm hoping they turn out to be important plot points. I know there's a lot that isn't explained in this so far, but rest assured that everything WILL be explained. Assuming I don't forget to explain it. :D_

_Until next chapter folks!_

_-eaglefan101_


	3. Chapter 3: The Magazine

_Hello once again!_

_Y'know, I'm amazed. I haven't gotten any writers block yet. Strange. That usually happens within the third chapter. Ah well. Glad it didn't hit me yet._

_Thanks for the reviews people! Keep 'em coming!_

_And now, chapter 3._

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**Chapter 3: The Magazine**

"Dang it! I still can't do it!"

"Don't think about it so much. If you try too hard, it won't happen."

Yakko watched as the toon cat took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and reached behind his back once more. He pulled his hand from behind his back and looked into his hand. Nothing. Again. The toon cat sighed.

"I thought I would have been able to do it by now..."

"It usually takes longer than a few hours for a toon to be able to pull anything out from behind his back," Yakko told him. It was true. All toons needed extensive training to be able to use his or her toon powers. Yakko could remember his first lessons at the studio, just after he and his siblings were given the offer of having their own cartoon show. His lessons were long and tiresome, but well worth the effort. If the Warners had not gotten those lessons, there was no way they would be able to film their show.

Yakko was currently trying to teach the toon cat, Chris was his name, how to pull objects out from behind his back. It was one of the most basic of toon powers, and also one of the most important. Especially if a toon wanted to try and get his or her own show. However, most toons who learned Toon Theory mostly did it for their own benefit, not to get their own show. Having toon powers helped out in a lot of ways. If a toon ever needed anything at all, he could just pull the object out from his back. If a toon needed to make a quick escape, they could use their toon speed. There were many benefits to being a toon rather than a human.

Yakko rather enjoyed his sessions with all of his students. Well, most of his students. There was the occasional bastard child who wouldn't listen no matter how hard he tried, but most of them did what they were told. A few of them were fairly quick learners as well, only needing one or two sessions to be able to pull the pebble from behind their backs. Apparently, Chris was not one of them. It was close to the end of their session, and he hadn't even gotten a hint of the pebble.

"Here, let's go through the motions again. Then you'll have time to try one more time before we're done here." Chris nodded. "Okay, close your eyes." He did so. "Take your hand and reach behind your back. Hold it there. Good. Now the trick is not to think about the pebble appearing. It's already there; you just have to believe that it's there. You can feel it in your hand." Chris nodded, eyes still closed. He pulled his hand from behind his back.

"I think I'm ready to try again." Yakko nodded.

"Go ahead."

Chris took a deep breath and closed his eyes, just as he had done the past dozen times. He stuck his hand behind his back. No, don't think about it, believe it. It's there. Grab it. His eyes shot wide open as he felt something in his hand.

He quickly brought his hand from behind his back and looked into it. There it was, the pebble. Suddenly, just as soon as it had appeared, it had vanished. Chris looked at his empty hand confused.

"Great job, you did it! Nice work!" Yakko smiled at his student, who was still looking at his empty hand.

"I don't get it," the toon cat said. He looked up at Yakko. "Why is it that anything a toon pulls from behind his back disappears after a while? And why did the pebble disappear so quickly?" Yakko thought for a brief second before answering.

"Remember, anything a toon pulls from behind his back isn't technically real. Think of it as a figment of your imagination, except everyone can see it and even hold it. Since it's not real, it can't stay in the real world forever. As for why the pebble disappeared so quickly, well once you get more experience, that pebble will stay in your hand for much longer." Chris looked back into his empty hand.

"Toon Theory is confusing." Yakko chuckled.

"I never said it wasn't." He looked at his watch. Yikes, that session went on a little later than expected. "Well, looks like we went a little late today. That's enough for now." Chris looked disappointed.

"When will we get into the other powers?"

"As soon as you master the one you've just learned. Come on, let's go talk to your mom."

They walked into the living room where Chris's mom sat on the couch, watching TV. She looked away from her show and smiled at her son.

"So, how's he doing?" Yakko smiled with pride.

"Well, he was able to pull a pebble from behind his back, so it's definitely a start."

"Wow, really? Doesn't it take a few days before a toon can do that?"

"Usually, but I guess you're son is a fast learner." Chris's mom pulled out her purse and grabbed fifty dollars. She handed it to Yakko, who immediately put it in his wallet.

"I guess you really do live up to your reputation," she said.

"Why thank you," Yakko said as he mock bowed. "I'll see you next week Chris."

"You bet!" he said.

Yakko walked out the front door and over to his car. Another session, another fifty bucks in his wallet. Luckily this was today's last session. He was happy with his job, mostly. He usually had three or four sessions a day, five days a week. All of that added up to 850-950 dollars a week. More than enough to live off of. He started his car and started heading home. He pulled his pack of cigarettes from the glove box and took out the last one in the pack.

_Damn, guess I gotta stop at the store on the way home._

Yakko shrugged and lit the tobacco.

-

Wakko walked outside of the restaurant, holding his hat. It had been a pretty slow day so far. Probably because it was Monday afternoon, and nobody usually ate at the restaurant until much later. He leaned against the wall, happy that he only had a few hours left. He hated working while it was busy.

"Well look who it is!"

Wakko turned to the buffalo toon smoking a cigarette and smiled. It was Bill, one of the waiters at the restaurant. He was around nineteen years old, three years younger than Wakko. Wakko never noticed the age difference. He met him a few months ago when he started as a chef in the restaurant. He was a very laid back person.

"Guess you're on your break too, huh?" Wakko said to him.

"Nah, I clocked out a few minutes ago. I'm just waiting for my ride." Wakko raised his eyebrow.

"Ride? What happened to your car?"

"I kinda messed up my muffler. Happened yesterday morning. I backed into a rock and the brackets popped off. I broke one of them completely." Wakko laughed.

"Nice one. Were you sober?" Bill smiled.

"Yeah. I just didn't see the rock. It happened when I backed out of my friend's driveway."

"When will you get it back?"

"Dunno. When it's fixed I guess." Wakko smiled at his friend.

"So, pretty slow day today huh?" Wakko commented. Bill nodded.

"I hate working morning to early afternoon. I barely get any tables."

"How much in tips did you make?" Bill pulled a wad of money out of his pocket and began counting it.

"Twenty." He put his money back in his pocket and sighed.

"Wow," Wakko said. "That sucks. You should try to get better hours." Bill shrugged.

"Eh, I don't get early shifts too often, so whatever." He grinned. "Besides, I've got just enough for a bag." Wakko laughed.

"If you're into that sort of thing."

"Which you know that I am." Wakko smiled. He never was the kind of person who would ever consider dabbling in any sort of drugs. However, he didn't really have a problem with pot, and his friendship with Bill proved that. He just chose not to do it. It wasn't worth the risk. Bill pulled Wakko from his thoughts.

"So have you seen the cover of that one fashion magazine?" Wakko looked at Bill, confused.

"Why would I ever... oh wait! Shit, they finally printed it?" Bill nodded.

"Yup. Saw it in the grocery store today."

"Well, how does she look?" Bill smiled evilly.

"If I told you, you'd probably kill me." Wakko lightly punched him in the arm.

"Bastard." Bill laughed at Wakko.

"But in all seriousness, yeah she looks good on the cover. I guess she really enjoys this modeling stuff huh?"

"Yeah, so far. No complaints yet." Wakko internally jumped for joy. He was excited to see the cover, but he was more excited to see the look on Dot's face when she saw it. "Well, I guess I'll have to stop on the way home and grab a copy."

"Yeah." Bill watched as a car slowed down and stopped in front of him. "Well, I gotta go. Ride's here. See ya later Wak."

"Later Bill." Wakko waved as he watched his friend climb into the car. As the car sped off, he looked at his watch.

_Crap. Took too long._

He went back into the restaurant, hoping that his boss didn't chew him out.

-

Yakko parked the car got out. He looked up at the sign in front of the store.

_Average Joe's Quick Shop_

He walked through the door and walked up to the counter, looking at the familiar face working the register.

"Yakko! How very unsurprising!" Yakko smiled at him.

"Hey Joe. How've ya been?"

"Same as I was two days ago when you came in." Yakko laughed. Joe was a very upbeat character, and Yakko had known him for years. That was due to him being one of Joe's regular customers. His shop was only a short drive from his house. Yakko couldn't remember the last time he had seen the shop owner in a bad mood, and he was fairly skilled at making Yakko feel better whenever he was down.

"So, a pack of Lucky Strikes I assume?" Joe asked. Yakko grinned at the man.

"You know me too well Joe." He watched as the shop owner grabbed the tobacco and placed it on the counter.

"Y'know, we just got a new shipment of magazines. You should check them out." Yakko shook his head. He never liked magazines. He was more into novels and the newspaper.

"Eeeeeehhhhh... I'll pass."

"C'mon Warner. Just go have a look. Might find something that catches your eye." Yakko was confused as he saw the shop owner give a sort of knowing grin. He decided to humor him and walked over to the magazine rack. He visually scanned them. There were many different varieties. Cars, guitars, tabloids, fashion...

His eyes froze over a certain fashion magazine.

_What the... Dot?_

Yakko blinked his eyes a few times before he realized that he wasn't seeing things. Right on the cover of Fashion Diva magazine was Dot Warner. His sister. The first time he had seen her face since she left. He was amazed that she still looked almost exactly the same, though she did look a little aged. She wore a pink shirt and blue jeans. She was posing, giving her own unique smile. He stared at the magazine for several minutes before grabbing it. He didn't care if it was a fashion magazine, he was buying it. He turned to Joe.

"The last thing I expected to see when I got the magazine shipment was your sister on the cover of one of them." Joe smiled at Yakko. "Sorry if it upset you, but I thought you would wanna at least see it..."

"No... That's okay. Thanks." He brought the magazine to the counter and placed it next to the pack of cigarettes.

"I guess you're gunna buy it?" Yakko nodded his head. Joe scanned the items and announced the total. "That's $10.50 Yakko." Yakko raised an eyebrow.

"Geez, how much is that magazine?" Joe shook his head.

"It's not the magazine." He pointed at the sign that displayed the prices of all packs of cigarettes. Yakko sighed.

"They raised the taxes again? Geez, they almost raised it an entire dollar."

"Another reason you should quit Yakko," Joe said. "Hell, I bet nobody even expected that you would even start smoking."

"Eh, lay off." Yakko gave Joe the money and grabbed his items. "I'll see ya later."

"Yeah, probably tomorrow." Yakko laughed and walked out the door. He got into his car and turned on the light. He looked at the magazine's cover again. Jesus, Dot was a model? Yakko still couldn't believe it. How long has she been a model? Did she like it? Probably, knowing his sister. What did Wakko do? Was he able to be a cook? Where are they living now? Are they living together or did they split apart?

All of these questions buzzed around in Yakko's head as he studied the cover. He was struck with sadness again. It had been so long. Too long. Yakko had enough. He wanted to see them again. Babs had told him not to give up hope. Luckily, the magazine had given him more hope, and he wasn't quite sure why.

Suddenly, an idea popped into his head.

He turned the page, opening to a large advertisement for jeans. Nothing interesting. He kept turning until he found what he was looking for. Copyright information. He scanned his finger down until he had found what he was looking for.

_Cover Photo shot at Fashion Diva Studio in Bakersfield, CA._

Yakko's heart skipped a beat. That was where Dot had her photo taken. Yakko figured that she couldn't live too far from there. He highly doubted that she would drive more than an hour for a photo shoot. Well, unless she was determined. Yakko was ecstatic. While it wasn't much to work off of, he had found a general area where Dot probably lived. Bakersfield California. However, even with this information, Yakko doubted that he would be able to find her. She could live somewhere outside of Bakersfield.

Yakko thought about what he could do. He wondered if he could just go to the studio and ask questions. It was the best thing he could do at this point, and he had no other ideas. He finally started his car and headed for his apartment.

------------

_Phew._

_I was kind of hoping that Yakko wouldn't find too much information about where Wakko and Dot are until a later chapter, I couldn't really avoid it. Plus, I don't want to make you guys feel like the story is dragging on. I'm still unsure of how long this thing will be, but we'll just have to wait and see! Hope you liked this chapter by the way!_

_Until next chapter folks!_

_-eaglefan101_


	4. Chapter 4: In Bakersfield

_Aaaaand we're back!_

_Been a while hasn't it? Well, allow me to explain myself. Well, I moved into college a few weeks ago. It's been pretty hectic since then, and I haven't had too much time to work on this. That, and I'm lazy! :P_

_Sorry about the wait on this one. Now that I'm used to my new schedule, I should be able to get these chapters out faster._

_Okay, enough of the explanation. Here's chapter 4. It's a short one!_

------------

**Chapter 4: In Bakersfield**

"You found Dot?!"

Babs and Buster were sitting in Yakko's living room. Yakko had called them not too long after he got home. He felt the need to inform them of what he had found out that day. After all, they were good friends with Wakko and Dot. Still, he didn't really want to go with them to see his siblings. He wanted to do that alone.

"Well, kind of." Yakko scratched the back of his neck. He walked over to the bookcase and pulled out the magazine he had bought earlier. He showed the cover to Babs and Buster, who both gasped in shock.

"She's a model?" Babs asked.

"Apparently," Yakko answered.

"So what does this have to do with finding Dot?" Buster questioned.

"Well, when I got that magazine, for some reason I thought they'd post some information about the cover shot somewhere in the copyright information." He grabbed the magazine and flipped a few pages until he found the copyright information. He pointed at the cover shot information.

"Bakersfield?" Buster said. "Well, at least she's still in California."

"Who says she is?" Babs said. "Just because she got the photo shot in that studio doesn't mean that she lives close to it."

"That doesn't matter," Yakko said. "It's all I got to work with for now."

"How the hell are you going to find her? Walk around and knock on doors?" Yakko grinned.

"As exciting as that sounds Babs, no. I figured that the studio must have some kind of information on her. Maybe they know where she lives?"

"You really think they'd just tell you?" Buster asked.

"Not really, but I don't care. I'm gunna try anyways." Buster and Babs said no more after that. After a long awkward silence, Yakko grabbed a cigarette from his pack and lit it. He breathed in the tobacco.

"I'm guessing you want to go alone?" Buster suddenly asked. Yakko said nothing at first. He didn't want to hurt their feelings, but he figured they would understand. He nodded.

"When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow morning. No idea how long the drive will be, but I guess I'll find out when I get there." Yakko sighed. "Thank god I have GPS on my phone. I hate using Map Quest."

"Well, call us if you find her. If not, well call us anyways."

"I will Buster." Yakko smiled briefly. He had gotten one step closer to seeing his siblings again. Well, one of his siblings at least. Yakko figured that Wakko and Dot both lived on their own.

Hopefully he wouldn't end up at another dead end.

-

Dot opened the door and immediately headed for the couch. She threw herself onto the couch and closed her eyes. Who would have thought that being a model was so tiring? All she wanted to do now was sleep. Hell, she didn't even think she had the energy to eat.

"Oh, you're home."

Dot looked up to see Wakko standing by the door to the kitchen.

"Hey," she mumbled.

"Wow, you look pretty tired." Dot rolled her eyes.

"That obvious huh?" Wakko smiled and sat down on the recliner by Dot. "Not to be rude," Dot said, "but could you leave me alone? I'm exhausted." Wakko pulled out the magazine that he had been hiding behind his back.

"Sorry, just thought you'd like to see this." Dot's eyes widened the moment her eyes laid on the magazine. She immediately sat up and grabbed the magazine from Wakko's hands. He laughed. "I thought you were tired."

"Bite me," she retorted. She stared at the cover for several minutes. "Finally! I thought they would never print it."

"Yeah. Bill told me about it today at work. Thought it'd be nice to pick up a copy for you."

"Why didn't they tell me it was out? Those assholes."

"Who cares? Just be happy that it's out."

"Yeah, I guess." She continued to stare at the cover. "It's weird, seeing your own face on a magazine." Wakko grinned.

"What? Seeing yourself on TV wasn't weird?"

"I'm not saying that," Dot said. "It's just, that was so long ago. I've almost gotten used to living a normal life, and yet here I am. On the cover of a magazine."

"Just don't let it get to your head sis. Ow!" Dot smacked her brother on the head. "What was that for?"

"Nothing." Dot gave Wakko her unique innocent smile. Wakko shook his head.

"You shouldn't hit people."

"You're my brother. I'm allowed to."

"And who says I can't return the favor?" Wakko grinned evilly. Dot laughed.

"You would never hit me. I'm too cute."

"Hey Dot. This isn't the 90's anymore. That whole 'I'm cute' thing isn't going to work on everyone."

"Says you." They both laughed in unison. Dot continued to stare at the magazine. "So... you think he's seen it?"

The mood of the room changed immediately. Wakko's expression changed from happy to upset. Did they really have to bring up that subject everyday? It was getting tiresome. He thought for a minute before answering.

"Well, he never liked magazines. So I dunno." Looking at Dot's face, Wakko immediately realized that was the wrong thing to say. "But hey he knows a lot of people back in Burbank, so someone must have told him about it." Dot smiled.

"I'd love to see the look on his face when he saw it, if he saw it at least." Wakko nodded in agreement. Dot yawned and got up off of the couch. "I'm going to bed. I need sleep."

"Not even going to eat?" Wakko asked, amazed.

"Nah, I'm not really that hungry. Goodnight!"

"Okay. 'Night Dot."

Wakko watched his sister walk to her bedroom. He looked at the magazine cover once more. For some reason, he still couldn't get his head around the fact that Dot was on the cover.

He thought Dot's question. Had Yakko seen it? Probably. Wakko really wanted to know what his brother's reaction was. Hopefully he was happy for her. Or maybe not. His thoughts went back to that tabloid article.

_No, he doesn't hate me. He can't hate me, right?_

-

_You have arrived at your destination._

Yakko turned off the GPS on his phone and got out of the car. He walked over to the large building, stopping in front of it to look at the sign.

_Fashion Diva Studio_

Well, he was at the right place. He walked into the building, hoping that he hadn't drove two hours for nothing. He looked around the room, glancing at the many fashion posters that littered the walls. He looked at the lady behind a counter, typing on a computer. He took a deep breath and walked towards her.

"Hi, can I help you?" she said. Yakko hesitated.

"Well, maybe. I'm kind of looking for some information."

"Okay, what kind of information?" Yakko mentally crossed his fingers.

"It's about one of your models, Dot Warner." She smiled at him.

"You're Yakko, aren't you?" Yakko nodded.

"Yeah. Anyways, I was wondering if you know where she lives." Her face fell.

Well, that's not a good sign.

"Erm, it's kind of against company policy to give away personal information relating to our models." Yakko sighed.

"But I'm her brother! You really can't tell me that? It's not like I'm some stalking creep..."

"That may be the case, but there are no exceptions. I could get fired." She gave Yakko a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry Yakko." Yakko rubbed the bridge of his nose, trying not to lose his temper.

"Look," he said, in a somewhat sad tone. "You don't understand. I haven't seen my brother or sister for over five years. If I don't see at least one of them soon I'm going to go insane. Please, I need to talk to them." She stared at Yakko before turning back to her computer. She typed in a few keys before speaking again.

"You realize I could get fired for this..." Yakko chuckled.

"No offense, but I could care less." Strangely enough, the lady started laughing.

"None taken I guess." She grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled down an address. When she finished, she handed it to Yakko. "There. If anyone asks, I didn't do this for you."

"No problem! Thanks!" With that, Yakko rushed out the door, looking at the piece of paper. He grinned, thankful that she was living in Bakersfield. He punched the address into the GPS on his phone and got into his car. It wasn't long before Yakko had arrived.

He parked on the curb in front of the house. While it wasn't exactly a fancy house, it did look nice. There was a car parked in the driveway, implying that Dot was home. Yakko turned off his car and mentally prepared himself. He thought about all of the possible outcomes from this visit. What would happen? Would she be happy to see him, or would she be angry? Would she invite him into her house, or would she slam the door in his face.

Yakko knew that there was only one way to answer that question.

He opened the car door and stepped out. Damn, he could really use a cigarette right now. Maybe that would calm his nerves. He decided against it, as he wanted to do nothing but see his sister. He walked up to the door, contemplating on whether or not he should ring the doorbell. He didn't know how long he stood in front of the door. He was too nervous for this. He almost wanted to go back to the car and drive away. Before he changed his mind, he rang the doorbell. He had no idea how long he waited for the door to open. It felt like an eternity. He watched as the doorknob turned. He braced himself. He could hear his own heartbeat. The door opened. Dot Warner was staring at him, with a shocked expression.

"...Yakko?"

-

_Jesus, that was a LOT shorter than I anticipated._

_To be honest, I'm not sure if I like how this chapter came out. Ah well, too late for that now. As I said before, I'm sorry this one took so long. Don't worry, I'll do better. The next chapter should be up before too long._

_Until next chapter folks!_

_-eaglefan101_


	5. Chapter 5: Wrong Number

**UPDATE: Screwed something up. Left out something in my last post of this chapter, so I re-wrote it.**

_Greetings once again!_

_So... Chapter 5. Y'know, I'm really amazed at how quick I got this posted. I mean, the last chapter took me like two weeks, and this one only takes a few days. And it's much longer than the last one too. Ah well, I'm just rambling now._

_Here's chapter 5!_

------------

**Chapter 5: Wrong Number**

"Hi Dot."

Yakko looked at Dot. Her face was stricken with shock. Was she angry, or happy? Yakko couldn't tell.

"How did... What are you doing here?" Yakko didn't answer at first. He didn't know what to say. He scratched the back of his neck.

"I... uhh... just wanted to see you." The unease in Yakko's voice did not go unnoticed by Dot. Nobody said anything. The awkward silence was starting to get to Yakko. Maybe this was a bad idea. He thought about back for a brief second. God did he need a cigarette. Suddenly, Dot ran into Yakko and gave him a fierce hug. Yakko stumbled in surprise. As soon as he regained his posture, he returned the hug.

"It's good to see you," Dot said.

"Ditto." For the first time in what felt like forever, Yakko didn't have to force a smile. Dot started heading into the house, motioning for Yakko to follow.

"Come on in," she said. Yakko followed her into the house. As he followed Dot, he observed her many belongings. She led him to the living room and sat down. Yakko followed. Neither one knew how to start the conversation. Finally, Dot broke the silence.

"So, uh, how did you find this place?" Dot asked. Yakko grinned.

"Well, it started with seeing you on the cover of a magazine." Dot immediately gasped.

"You saw it?!"

"Yeah. You looked great by the way." Dot grinned. "Anyways, I thought that maybe they would post the information on where that photo was taken somewhere in the magazine. Luckily, I found it."

"Lemme guess," Dot interrupted. "You drove all the way to the studio from Burbank and asked them where I lived?" Yakko nodded.

"Yeah, that's pretty much what I did."

"They just gave you the address with no problem?"

"Not really, I kinda had to beg a bit." Dot said nothing. She was pretty surprised that Yakko went so far out of his way to see her.

"Well, how have ya been the past five years?" Yakko hesitated. Did he really want to answer that question honestly? He decided against it.

"Eeeeehhh... not too bad." He quickly decided to change the subject. "Still been teaching toon theory." Yakko figured that Dot had taken the hint.

"Oh, how's that going?" she asked. Yakko shrugged his shoulders.

"Eh, it's a living. So how have you been?"

"Well, me and Wakko bought this house a bit after... after we left." Yakko jumped up at Wakko's name.

"Wakko? He lives here too?" He looked around frantically. "Where is he?" Dot laughed.

"Calm down, he's not here right now. He went out to get food."

"Oh." He sat back down.

"He should be back soon. Anyways, I only just started this modeling thing a few months ago. As for Wakko, he cooks at a restaurant."

"How's he liking that?" Yakko asked.

"He loves it. And so do I." Yakko raised an eyebrow.

"Care to elaborate?"

"Well, if you stay for dinner you'll see what I mean." Yakko laughed. At that moment, Yakko was the happiest he had been in a while. Not only had he finally seen Dot again, but he would be seeing Wakko before too long. Suddenly, Yakko was struck with worry. Sure, Dot had been happy to see him, but would Wakko give him the same welcome? He decided to push that out of his mind for now.

"Hey Yakko?" He turned to Dot. She had a serious expression on her face. "How have you really been?" Yakko sighed. He really didn't want to answer. "Be honest," Dot added.

"Well..." Yakko thought for a moment. What should he say? He needed to say something that would not only satisfy Dot, but also himself. How had he been? Depressed maybe, or was that too harsh? Finally, Yakko found the word he was looking for.

"Lonely." Dot nodded. Yakko figured that might have been obvious. He decided to clarify.

"Well, even after years of not having you guys around, it still feels weird knowing you're not in the house. I mean... I changed big time when you guys left."

"Speaking of changes..." Dot didn't have to say anything more. Yakko already knew what she was going to ask.

"Yeah, I know. Wait for Wakko to get here. I want to talk to you both about that. I'd rather not tell the same story twice." Dot gave Yakko a curious look.

"Story?"

"Save it for when Wakko gets here." Dot nodded. Yakko thought for a moment. "Did you ever think about coming back?" Dot was surprised at the question. She didn't say anything for quite a while. Finally, she answered.

"Well, yeah. One of the main reasons why I didn't was because of Wakko."

"Wakko?" Yakko asked, confused. She nodded.

"Well, he didn't really want to go back, and I didn't want to leave him alone." Yakko's face fell. Maybe his brother really did hate him.

"Why didn't he want to go back?" Yakko asked.

"Don't worry, he doesn't hate you. Ask him, when he gets home." Right on cue, Yakko heard the front door open.

"Dot!" The Scouse accent rang throughout the house. "I'm home! Help me carry this crap in!"

"Wakko, come into the living room!" Dot called back. Yakko shifted uncomfortably in his seat. His ears twitched at the sound of footsteps coming closer to the living room. Wakko walked through the door into the living room, stopping short at the sight of Yakko. His jaw dropped slightly. Yakko stood from his chair. He gave Wakko a sad smile.

"Hey Wakko." He gave him a small wave. Wakko continued to stare at Yakko.

"Uh, when did you get here?" Wakko couldn't hide his uncomfortable face.

"Around ten minutes ago." Wakko said no more. He was still getting over the shock of seeing his brother. Suddenly, Wakko smiled and stuck out his hand. Yakko smiled and grabbed it. Wakko then pulled him into a hug.

"That was unexpected," Yakko said. "What happened to the Wakko that was too old for hugs?" Yakko teased.

"Oh shut up," Wakko said jokingly. "So how've ya been?"

"Wait," Dot said. "There'll be time for that later."

"What do you mean?" Wakko asked. She turned to Yakko.

"Yakko needs to tell us something first." Yakko sighed.

"Okay, might as well get it out of the way." Wakko suddenly realized what was going on.

"Is this about what I think it's about?" he asked. "Why you changed?" Yakko nodded and took in a deep breath.

"Okay, it happened around a month before you guys left."

-

"You're not going to catch up to me," Yakko said. Wakko snorted at his comment. They both concentrated on the screen in front of them. Their fingers tapped away on the controllers. Yakko was doing everything he could to distract Wakko. It was clear that Yakko was going to win, but that wasn't stopping Wakko. "So after I win, would you like me to wait for you to finish? I mean we could be here a while..."

"Oh piss off," Wakko said. Yakko laughed at the comment. After a few moments, Yakko dropped his controller and crossed his arms.

"Geez Wakko," Dot said from behind the couch. "I thought you said you were good at this game?" Wakko threw a pillow at Dot, which she blocked.

"Well, that was fun," Yakko said.

"It's not fair," Wakko said. "You play this game way more than I do." Yakko grinned. Suddenly, the three Warners all became silent. Their ears twitched at the sound of a ringing phone. They all exchanged knowing looks.

"I'LL GET IT!"

The three Warners immediately ran to the cordless phone in the kitchen. Dot grabbed the phone and ran out of the kitchen, followed by her brothers. Wakko ran up to Dot and grabbed the phone. They each were pulling the phone. Yakko wondered which one of them would get it. Suddenly, he looked over to the living room.

"Wakko! What the hell did you do to the TV?!" Both Dot and Wakko stopped their fight and looked over to the living room. Yakko swiftly grabbed the remote out of their hands and ran to his bedroom. He entered it and locked the door. Immediately after that, he heard knocking on the door.

"Hey, no fair!" Dot shouted.

"I never get to get it..." Wakko said.

Yakko laughed and answered the telephone.

"Hello?"

_"...This the Warner house?"_ The voice was deep and slightly raspy. Yakko raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, who is this?" There was a small pause before the man answered.

_"If I were you I'd watch your back. Your siblings too."_ Yakko suddenly became slightly agitated.

"What do you mean? Who are you?"

_"I've been looking for you. Ever since I started seeing you and your worthless siblings on TV."_ Yakko's jaw was dropped. Whoever this was, he wasn't going to tell him.

"What the hell do you want with us?"

_"Every time I see one of you smug bastards, it does nothing but enrage me. You are a reminder of my failure in life. I just want to do something about that."_ Yakko had nothing to say. The last thing he expected from the phone call was a death threat.

"You stay the hell away from us!" The voice on the other line laughed.

_"I'll be seeing you. And your siblings. Make sure you keep a real good eye on them."_ The line suddenly went dead. Yakko lowered his arm, breathing heavily. His heart was pounding.

What the hell was that about? Who was that guy? Yakko was still trying to get over the shock. What should he do about this? Should he call the police? Maybe... no. He couldn't call the police. Dot and Wakko would find out. He didn't want them to find out. He didn't want to worry them. Still, he wanted to start being more careful. What if that threat was legitimate?

Yakko shook his head and opened the door, revealing Wakko and Dot. He hoped they hadn't heard the conversation.

"So, who was on the phone?" Wakko asked. Well, at least they hadn't heard all that. Yakko quickly thought of an answer.

"I dunno. Wrong number I guess." He struggled to hide the worry in his voice. He must have done a good job, because neither Wakko nor Dot pushed the issue.

"Boring! Anyways, c'mon! It's my turn to play you Yakko." Yakko shook his head.

"Nah, that's okay. I think I'm just going to go to bed." Wakko raised an eyebrow.

"Really? I mean, it's only ten." Yakko faked a yawn.

"I know, I'm just tired. Got a big of a headache too. I'm just gunna sleep it off." Dot cast Yakko a slightly suspicious look, but then shrugged it off.

"Okay, see ya in the morning," she said.

"Yeah, 'night Yakko!" Wakko said.

"'Night." Yakko went back into his bedroom and threw himself down on the bed. His mind raced through many thoughts. He shut his eyes, wanting to do nothing but sleep. Maybe some sleep would clear his mind.

-

Yakko said nothing more after finishing his story. There was a long silence as the Wakko and Dot thought about what they had just heard.

"Any idea who that guy was?" Wakko finally asked. Yakko shook his head.

"Well, now that I see nothing's happened, I'm just assuming it was a crazed fan looking for some cheap laughs."

"So that's why you got overprotective," Dot commented.

"Yeah. I guess I just let it get to my head. I'm sorry I acted like a prick."

"It's okay," Dot said. "I understand." Yakko nodded. He took in a deep breath. That was one more huge weight off his shoulders. He needed a cigarette. He needed it now. Did he really want to admit to them that he smoked too? He decided he didn't really care too much. He stood up from his chair.

"I'll be right back. I'm just gunna step outside for a few minutes."

"What for?" Dot asked.

"Just... uhh... forgot something in my car." Dot and Wakko looked at each other in confusion. Yakko headed out the doors.

"He didn't forget anything in his car." Dot said. Wakko nodded in agreement. He headed towards the door. "You're going outside with him?" Dot asked.

"Yeah, figure this would be a good time to talk to him alone. I mean, you got to, so why can't I?" Dot nodded.

-

Yakko savored the taste of the smoke in his mouth. He slowly exhaled, watching the smoke climb higher into the air. He felt much better now. That story had taken a bit of a toll on him. He stretched out on the stone steps he was sitting on. Suddenly, he heard the front door open.

_Damn it._

Wakko walked outside. His jaw dropped slightly at the sight of Yakko. He sat next to Yakko, not saying a word. Yakko took another drag of his cigarette, waiting for Wakko to talk.

"Since when did you smoke?" Wakko finally asked.

"Little more than a year ago."

"Oh." Suddenly, Wakko laughed. Yakko glared at him.

"And what may I ask is so funny?" Yakko asked.

"Nothing. It's just, all my life you've been telling me how bad smoking is, and yet here you are." Yakko snorted.

"And I stand by my statements. Smoking is terrible, and you should never start. You can't even begin to understand how hard it is to quit." Wakko had no retort. Yakko took another drag of the cigarette, then flicked it out onto the streets. "Hey, I gotta ask you something."

"Shoot," Wakko said.

"Dot said that the main reason she didn't come back was because she didn't want to leave you alone. Why didn't you want to come back?" Wakko looked down. He didn't expect Yakko to find that out. He felt slightly ashamed. He figured he might as well try to explain himself.

"I was scared to go back," Wakko said.

"Why?" Wakko looked seriously at his brother.

"I was afraid you hated me." Wakko gathered his thoughts before continuing. "I mean, when we left, I immediately felt guilty. I mean, when we left it must have been the most devastating moment of your life. I can't imagine what it's done to you. For instance, you've started smoking."

"Look, I'm not blaming you for any mistakes I've made in the past five years."

"Well, for the longest time, I thought you did blame us. I didn't want to go back just to find out that you hated us."

"Wakko, I'm your brother. I could never hate you." Wakko smiled at him.

"Thanks."

"No problem." Yakko quickly changed the subject. "So, you're a cook now huh?"

"Yeah!" Wakko said with some enthusiasm. "Gives me more than enough to live off of. Plus I get to be around food all day." Yakko chuckled. "You should stay for dinner."

"That depends on what you're cooking," Yakko said. Wakko shrugged.

"Eh, I'll find something to make."

"Sold," Yakko said, with a grin on his face. Wakko smiled back at his brother.

"It's really good to see you again man."

"Yeah, same here."

Yakko and Wakko walked back into the house. Yakko suddenly remembered that he had to call Babs and Buster. He took a look at his brother and sister and decided that the call could wait. There was a lot of cathing up to do.

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_Done! Stick a fork in it!_

_So yeah. This one was pretty long. I actually think it's the longest chapter yet. Hope you've enjoyed it! More chapters to come soon (hopefully)!_

_Until next chapter folks!_

_-eaglefan101_


	6. Chapter 6: Miserable

_Hello once more!_

_Apologies for the extremely late update. I've had college and RL taking up a lot of my free time. That, and I've been known to procrastinate. Luckily, my motivation kicked back in and I finally finished this chapter.  
_

_Enjoy!  
_

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**Chapter 6: Miserable**

The three Warners were sitting in the living room, discussing everything they've been up to within the past five years. Yakko was surprised at how much Wakko and Dot were able to accomplish during the time since they had left. Not only were they able to find decent jobs, but they were able to make enough money to buy their own house. Yakko felt a small amount of pride as he thought about it. He figured he must have done a good job in raising his siblings.

Yakko never went into too much detail when talking about what he had been through in the past five years. There were little details about his life that he felt the need to keep from his siblings. For example, he didn't tell them that he took up drinking. He already felt ashamed that they found out he started smoking, and he didn't want them to find out about his other disgusting habit. He kept telling himself that he would quit. Why was it so hard to put his words into action?

"So, have you seen Buster and Babs lately?" Wakko asked. Yakko nodded.

"Yeah, they actually came to visit last Saturday."

"What for?" Dot asked. Yakko hesitated.

"Erm, just to see me I guess." Yakko tried to hide the unease in his voice. Dot gave him a suspicious look, but didn't push the issue. "That reminds me, I still have to call them later."

"Think they'll want to come up here and visit?" Wakko asked hopefully. Just like Yakko, he had been good friends with Buster and Babs. Unfortunately for him, he had not seen them in years.

"Probably," Yakko answered. "I'll see if they wanna come up this weekend. How's that sound?"

"Okay!" Wakko exclaimed. "Man, I haven't seen them in forever." Yakko looked at his watch. Damn, was it that late already? He decided that he had better get back soon. After all, he didn't want to miss any tutoring sessions tomorrow. He stood up from the couch.

"Well sibs, I think it's about time for me to go." Wakko looked at his brother.

"You mean you're not staying over?" he asked, disappointed. Yakko shook his head.

"I can't. I gotta get up early tomorrow. I already took today off from work, I can't do the same thing tomorrow."

"Alright, I understand." Dot and Wakko both followed Yakko to the door. "It was great seeing you again," Wakko added.

"Yeah, same here!" Dot said. Yakko chuckled.

"I'll call you guys on Saturday," he said as he opened the door. "See ya later." He gave his sibs one final hug before walking out to his car. He was already starting to pull a cigarette out from his pack. As he fumbled for his keys, he thought about what how lucky he was to find his sibs. He made a mental note to thank Joe for showing him that magazine. As he sat down in the driver's seat, he noticed his cell phone sitting on the dashboard. He opened it and looked at the screen.

_Holy shit, 23 missed calls?_

Yakko looked through all his missed calls, each one of them from either Buster or Babs. He shrugged his shoulders and called Buster. Soon after, he heard a frantic and raspy voice.

_"There you are! Damn man where the hell have you been?" _Yakko scratched the back of his neck.

"Sorry, I didn't know you guys were calling."

_"It's okay. So how'd it go?" _Yakko smiled before answering.

"Well, better than I expected. Dot and Wakko both live in the same house."

_"You're kidding!"_

"Nope! And thankfully they don't hate me." Buster laughed.

_"Well, that's good. Any idea when you're going to go back up to visit them?"_

"Probably this Saturday. I was also wondering if you guys would wanna come. Wakko and Dot miss you guys."

_"Sure! I'll talk to Babs about it. Any idea when you're getting back?"_

"Eeeeehhh... about two hours or so. I'll call you when I get back."

_"Okay, see ya later!"_

"Later Buster." Yakko closed the phone and shoved it in his pocket.

-

"Well, that was certainly unexpected," Wakko commented as he watched his brother walk out the door. "Last thing I expected to see when I came home was Yakko." Dot nodded in agreement, but kept silent. She was still thinking about the visit. Yakko had told them how he's been doing since they left, and he seemed to be quite honest. Still, she couldn't help but think that he was still hiding something. Somehow she knew that he had been a lot more miserable than he had let on.

"You okay?" Wakko asked, breaking Dot out of her thoughts.

"Well... I'm a little worried about him." Wakko shot a confused look at his sister.

"Why?"

"Because he's miserable." Wakko didn't respond at first. Of course Yakko had been miserable. After all, he lived alone for over five years. As much as he didn't want to, Wakko blamed himself for it. After all, it was his idea to leave home.

"Well, I mean, that's kind of obvious Dot," Wakko said.

"I know but, well I don't think his visit cheered him up much."

"What makes you say that? Of course he was cheered up by visiting us."

"Maybe, but I'm sure that he's still miserable."

"Why?"

"Well..." Dot had trouble finding the right words. "He may have visited us, but he's still living alone." Wakko didn't think about that.

"If he's so miserable, why didn't he ask us to move back in with him?" Wakko asked.

"First off," Dot began, "he only just found us. You really think he's going to ask us to move in with him on the first day?" Wakko understood where his sister was coming from.

"I guess not."

"Second, he probably knows that it might not happen." Wakko was shocked by that statement. It couldn't be that Dot doesn't want to go back, could it?

"And why is that?"

"Because we have our own lives now. There are too many responsibilities at stake by moving back in with him. I've got my modeling job and you've got your cooking job. We can't just leave them."

"We could," Wakko retorted, "we'd just have to find new jobs."

"And then what Wakko?" Dot shot back at him. "Would we really live with him for the rest of our lives?" She paused for a moment to let her words sink in. "Even if we didn't leave before, we would have eventually. You can't tell me that you've never thought about living on your own before that whole ordeal came about can you?" Wakko sighed. Dot was right. Whether they stayed or left all those years ago, they still would have ended up living separately. After all, he can't depend on Yakko for his entire life.

"I guess your right, but what if he does ask us to move back in with him?" Wakko asked with a worried tone. "What would we tell him?"

"The same thing I just told you," Dot answered.

"That won't be good for him," Wakko commented, "and you know that. I don't think I could upset him again."

"Well Wakko we're probably going to have to face it one day. It's only a matter of time before Yakko asks us about it." She got up off the couch and headed towards the kitchen. She grabbed a soda from the fridge.

"Something tells me that he wasn't being completely truthful when he told us how he's been doing since we left," Wakko said.

"Why's that?" Dot asked, heading back into the living room.

"Well, I didn't want to mention this in front of him but..." Wakko paused to gather his thoughts. "Well when I went outside to talk to him, he was sitting on the steps, smoking." Dot nearly choked on her soda.

"Smoking?! Yakko? You can't be serious." Wakko nodded.

"He started a little more than a year ago. I can't help but think that he started because of us."

"Wakko, you can't keep blaming yourself for what Yakko has done since we left." Wakko thought back to when Yakko said the same thing. Still, he couldn't get those thoughts out of his head.

"I guess, but still. Yakko smoking? That alone tells me how stressed and miserable he's been. What else didn't he tell us about the past few years?"

"Probably a lot," Dot said. "He honestly didn't say much about how he's been."

"You think Buster and Babs would tell us what he's been up to?" Wakko asked hopefully.

"They might, but something tells me that Yakko will ask them not to reveal much about what's been going on."

"Even so, it wouldn't hurt to give it a try." Dot nodded in agreement. "Yakko said that he was going to try and bring them up this weekend. We can try and get some information from them."

"Okay, but don't get too hopeful." Wakko said nothing in reply. He stood up from the couch and stretched.

"I'm going to bed. I'm exhausted."

"Okay. Goodnight Wakko."

"'Night Dot." Dot watched her brother walk into his room, thinking about what he had said. She knew that Wakko was right. Yakko was undoubtedly more miserable than he had let on. He was probably trying to keep them from feeling bad about him. He was always the kind of person to hide his emotions. She looked at the clock and debated going to bed as well, however she didn't feel tired. She shrugged and turned the TV on, hoping to find something interesting to watch.

-

The first thing Yakko did when he got home was head for the liquor cabinet.

"One of these days I'm gunna quit these habits," Yakko mused to himself. "Today is not one of those days." He reached for the bottle of whiskey and poured himself a generous helping of the alcoholic beverage. He winced at the burning sensation traveling down his throat. Still holding the glass and the bottle, he headed over to his armchair and sat down. He turned on the TV and was greeted with the Animaniacs logo.

_Damn, I left the DVD player running?_

Ever since he found the Animaniacs DVDs, he had been watching them constantly. It felt nice to reminisce about the old days when they were young. Sure, the show might have been a pain in the ass to shoot at some points (to this day he still can't listen to the tune of the Mexican Hat Dance without feeling some amount of anger), but overall the show was an absolute blast to film. He felt that it really helped bring him and his siblings closer together. He can still remember watching the show with them, laughing at the clever jokes as well as groaning at their acting. Yakko had a strong belief that there isn't one person in the world who is perfectly happy with their own original work, whether it is music, movies, or television shows. Still, he had some good memories of him and his siblings laughing at their own show.

Finally, he shut the DVD player off and flipped through the channels. He knew that he wasn't going to be able to pay attention to anything on the tube, but he usually hated sitting in silence. It reminded him of how lonely he was. Sure, he had seen both his brother and his sister that night, but oddly enough the visit only reinforced the emptiness of his own house. He still couldn't help but feel like something was still missing. That feeling had been with him ever since his siblings left and the trip up to his siblings' house did nothing to repress that feeling. He pulled a cigarette from his pack and lit it, hoping to take his mind off of how miserable he was. He finally found out where his siblings were living. Shouldn't that make him happy?

Yakko didn't think so. Sure, he knew where they were, and he knew he could visit them any time he wanted. At least, any time he didn't have to work. Still, Yakko knew that he wasn't going to be completely happy unless his siblings moved back in with him.

_But that's probably not going to happen._

Yakko knew that it wasn't as simple as it sounded. After all, they both had their own responsibilities, and Yakko wasn't sure that they could just leave behind their jobs and their home just so they could live with their brother. That, and he believed that they wouldn't want to come back out of fear that Yakko would start acting irrational again. Yakko knew that was a possibility. In the back of his mind, he was still a little worried about the phone call. Who's to say that psycho isn't still looking for them?

_Stop thinking that Yakko, it was just some asshole trying to get a few laughs._

That's what he kept telling himself at least, but he still couldn't shake the worry away. He felt reassured now that he had seen them, but something told him that the threat might be legit. It may have been five years since the call, but Yakko still couldn't shake these thoughts from his mind. He shot a look at the clock in the wall. It was getting pretty late. He turned off the TV and headed to his room. As he got situated in his bed, he looked intently at the top drawer of his nightstand. He opened it and took out Wakko's note. He quickly went over it before throwing it into the trashcan.

------------

_Wow, pretty short chapter eh?_

_Anyways, I'm hoping that I'll be able to update this story more often. My motivation to finish this has kicked in, and with some luck, I'll be able to get at LEAST one chapter a week done._

_Until next chapter folks!_

_-eaglefan101_


	7. Chapter 7: The Truth

**NOTE: Due to how freaking tired I am right now, as I upload this chapter, I have yet to completely proofread it. I'll get that done soon though. Excuse any spelling/grammar mistakes, I am far too tired right now to go over this chapter. I just wanted to get it posted.**

_What's this? An update that's not late as hell? Well, this is certainly a change isn't it?_

_I have nothing else to say, other than enjoy chapter 7!_

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**Chapter 7: The Truth**

"Alright Buddy," Yakko said to his pupil. "Pay close attention." Buddy nodded at Yakko. They were both standing on a track at a football field. It had been a couple weeks since Buddy had completely mastered his first toon skill, pulling random objects from behind his back. Since he had first succeeded, Buddy had been practicing nonstop to master the new skill. Little by little, the amount of time between grabbing the pebble, and watching the pebble disappear had gradually increased. Soon enough, he went from pulling a pebble from behind his back to pulling pies, mallets, and various other objects. Overall, Yakko had been pleased with how his student had progressed. While he wasn't exactly a fast learner, Buddy was determined to learn as many toon techniques as he could.

Today was the day that Yakko decided to teach Buddy a new technique; toonspeed. Yakko knew that it wasn't going to be easy for him to teach Buddy the new skill. Toonspeed was a much more difficult technique to learn than pulling objects from behind one's back. A toon had to be well trained before he or she could run at incredible speeds, even for a few seconds. There was a lot more to it than stamina. The toon also had to be mentally prepped to be able to pull it off.

"So uh," Buddy began, "how exactly does this work?" Yakko pondered for a moment before answering.

"Well, the first thing you have to remember is that even the most skilled toons can't keep up their toonspeed for too long before becoming worn out. If a toon overdoes it, he or she will more than likely faint. I assume that you don't want that to happen?" Yakko asked with a grin. Buddy quickly shook his head.

"No Yakko."

"Though so. Now, as for how to pull it off, the first thing you must do is clear your mind." Buddy closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying not to think about all his worries. "The only thing you want to think about is your speed. You won't be able to pull off the toonspeed unless you really believe that you can run so fast. Now watch me." Yakko positioned himself to get ready for his demonstration. "What you're going to do is launch yourself forward and run as fast as you can. Remember, it's all in the mind. You have to really want it. Watch me." Yakko closed his eyes and took a deep breath. In the blink of an eye, Yakko took off like a speeding bullet. Buddy watched in amazement as Yakko ran around the track several times in a matter of seconds. The large dust trail he left behind made Buddy cough. Just as quickly as Yakko started, he stopped right next to Buddy.

"Wow..." Yakko flashed his trademark grin. Another reason why he loved his job was because it inflated his ego. Even though most of his students were kids, it was nice to be complimented on demonstrating basic to advanced Toon Theory techniques. He did a mock bow towards Buddy.

"Alright, now you try." Buddy looked unsure of his skills. Not surprising considering how much more difficult learning toonspeed is compared to grabbing random objects out of thin air. Buddy closed his eyes and thought of nothing but speed. He mentally saw himself running at an incredible speed. He took a deep breath and launched himself forward. Unsurprising to Yakko, Buddy didn't pull off more than a sprint. Buddy stopped in his tracks and ran back to Yakko.

"Well, so much for that," Buddy said, disappointed.

"Hey, come on!" Yakko said with enthusiasm. "Don't tell me I need to go through this with you again." Buddy said nothing in reply. When he first started to learn how to pull objects from behind his back, his frustration led him to nearly quitting learning Toon Theory. Thanks to Yakko, he reconsidered. "Don't tell me you're gunna give up already." Buddy looked at Yakko.

"I guess not."

"Hey, don't feel so bad. Did you really think you would get it on the first try?" Buddy shook his head. "Toonspeed is much more difficult to learn then the last technique I taught you. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if you don't pull it off until next week, or even the week after!"

"How long does it usually take for a toon to learn how to use toonspeed?" Buddy asked.

"Well, for most of my students, it took them three weeks to finally run faster than a sprint. And even then they couldn't run for more than a few seconds before they got too tired to move on." Buddy seemed to be reassured by Yakko's statements. "Here, let's try it aga-"

He was interrupted by his cell phone going off. He wasn't the kind to take a call during a tutoring session, but despite that, he checked the caller ID to see who it was. It was Babs. Yakko sighed.

"I should probably take this," he told Buddy. "Keep trying, I'll be watching from over there." He pointed at the bleachers near where they were standing.

"Okay!" Yakko walked over to the bleachers and opened his phone.

"Hey Babs."

"Hey Yakko," Babs said through the phone. "I just wanted to make sure that we're still going down to your siblings' house."

"Of course," Yakko replied. "What, you think I would just change my mind last minute?" Yakko watched as Buddy attempted to toonspeed once more, only to fail.

"Nah, I just wanted to be sure. Are you going to drive or should we?"

"I'll drive, don't worry about that."

"Okay. What time will you be picking us up?"

"Probably around noonish. We'll be going to that restaurant where Wakko works some time around five or six."

"Okay, I'll make sure Buster's up by then." Yakko chuckled.

"Okay Babs, see ya tomorrow."

"Bye."

Yakko closed his phone and started heading back over to where Buddy was standing. Buster, Babs, and Yakko had all planned on visiting Wakko and Dot on Saturday. Yakko was glad that the week was almost over. Even though he had seen them less than a week ago, he had already started missing his siblings. He knew that he had been lonely, but he had never realized it so much until the night he returned to his empty apartment in Burbank. He couldn't wait to see his brother and sister again, and he was sure that Buster and Babs felt the same way.

"Sorry about that," Yakko told Buddy. "Let's continue shall we?"

-

_Geez, this place is a lot fancier than I expected._

Yakko looked around the restaurant, noticing the overly fancy decor. Buster, Babs, Dot, and Wakko were talking amongst themselves, catching up on each others lives. Yakko decided not to get too involved in the conversation. After all, he had already had a chance to talk with his siblings. He felt that Buster and Babs should have the same privilege.

Wakko brought up the idea of going out to eat at the restaurant that he worked at. It was a great idea. After all, since Wakko worked as the head chef, he could get everyone a discount. He assured everyone that the food was excellent, though Yakko couldn't help but feel that the restaurant was trying too hard to be fancy. Each table had a bouquet of roses and the restaurant had very dull, but somehow sophisticated music playing. Yakko could barely stand it. He wasn't the kind of person you would see at a fancy restaurant anyways. He'd take fast food over a real restaurant any day. It wasn't the food he didn't like, it was the atmosphere. He couldn't explain, not even to himself, what exactly it was about restaurants that made him uncomfortable. However, this was the restaurant that Wakko worked at, and he decided to grin and bear it.

Besides, the food might actually be good.

"So how long have you worked here anyways?" Buster asked.

"A few months ago. It took them forever to look at my job application though. Didn't get a call for an interview for almost two months after I sent it in."

"Well, what do you expect in today's economy?" Dot said.

"Well if it isn't Wakko!" a nearby voice said. Wakko turned to see a large buffalo toon standing by their table.

"Bill! What's up man?"

"Not much. I guess I'll be your waiter for tonight."

"You guess?" Wakko and Bill laughed in unison. He turned to his brother. "Yakko, this is Bill. I met him when I started working here."

"Glad to meet ya," Yakko said as he shook his hand. "Hmm... Bill? As in, Buffalo Bill?" he teased. Bill merely smiled.

"Go ahead and get your jokes in. I've already gotten used to it thanks to your brother over here. Anyways, it's nice to finally meet you. I've heard quite a lot about you." Yakko's face fell slightly.

"Hopefully nothing too negative?" Bill said nothing more. He turned to Babs and Buster.

"And I assume you are Babs and Buster Bunny?"

"No relation," Buster said while nodding.

"Yet," Babs commented. Bill laughed at Busters reaction.

"Glad to meet you two. I've seen your show before. Good stuff, especially while..." Bill quickly stopped talking after seeing Wakko quickly shaking his head. Luckily, it went unnoticed by the others. "Eh, never mind. Anyways, here you go." He passed out the menus to the group. "I'll be back in a few. Take your time."

"Thanks Bill!" Wakko said. They all buried their faces into the menus, trying to figure out what they wanted to eat.

-

Even though they had already finished their meals, the group was still sitting at their table, talking about who knows what. Occasionally a loud bout of laughter would come from their table. Yakko stood up from his chair.

"I'll be right back guys, need to use the bathroom."

"Okay," Dot replied. She watched as her brother headed for the restroom. Once he was out of earshot, she gave a knowing look to Wakko, who nodded his head. Now was the time.

"Hey guys?" Buster and Babs looked at Dot. "There's something that me and Wakko wanna ask you." Even though she didn't ask the question yet, both Babs and Buster knew what it was about.

"Shoot," Buster said. Dot hesitated for a moment.

"What kind of effect did we really have on Yakko when we left?" Nobody said a word. Even though they had expected something like this, Babs and Buster didn't know how to answer. The pleading look on Wakko's and Dot's face didn't help the issue.

"You mean he didn't tell you?" Buster asked.

"Well he did but..." Dot trailed off. What was she going to say? She couldn't find the right words. "Well, something tells us that he kept a few things out when he talked to us."

"Actually," Wakko interrupted, "he didn't really say much. All he told us was that he was lonely."

"Well..." Buster tried to piece together the right words. "Okay. First off, we had no idea what had happened on the day you guys left. We headed over to your house to hang out with you guys. We knew that there was some kind of tension going on between you three, but we didn't know why."

"It was that obvious huh?" Dot asked.

"During the month before you guys left, Babs and I could tell that something was going on. You two and your brother didn't really seem as close as before. Anyways, we knocked on the door and Yakko answered. He looked like hell. He told us to leave him alone and shut the door." At that moment, Babs took over for him.

"We knocked a few more times, trying to find out what happened, but he didn't open the door. He called us a few days later to apologize and to tell us that you two had left."

"Did he tell you why?" Wakko asked. Babs shook her head.

"No. After that, it was all downhill. Every time we tried to hang out with him, he would barely say anything. He rarely smiled, he never cracked jokes, and his personality was completely shot. After a few years of this, he started to get used to the new lifestyle, but he was never the same." She paused to take a breath.

"What else about him changed?" Wakko asked.

"Well," Buster began, "as you two have probably found out, he started smoking a year or so ago." Both Dot and Wakko nodded. "However, what he probably didn't tell you is that he... Well... Promise me that you guys won't tell him I told you this, because he probably doesn't want you to know."

"We promise," Dot and Wakko said in unison. Buster took a deep breath.

"He's become a bit of an alcoholic."

"WHAT?!" Dot's and Wakko's shout echoed throughout the restaurant. Every person at every table immediately stopped talking and looked over at their table. Dot and Wakko blushed, and returned to their own conversation.

"Yeah, I didn't think you would like to hear that."

"It's true that Yakko's had a drink or two every now and then, but him an alcoholic? That's NOT Yakko."

"Well, it is now." Buster sighed. "Again, don't tell him that I told you that." Wakko scratched his head in thought.

"Did he ever tell you why we left?"

"Well, kind of, but I don't think we got the whole story." Dot and Wakko looked at each other. Should they tell Babs and Buster? It was only right, but would Yakko want them to know?

"If we promise not to tell Yakko what you've just told us," Dot said, "then you have to promise not to tell him what we're about to tell you." Buster and Babs both nodded their heads. Dot and Wakko filled them in on what happened. They told them all about the phone call, and how Yakko had changed after it had occurred.

"A death threat?!" Buster asked. "Who would want you three dead?"

"That's the problem," Wakko said. "We have no idea. Yakko just thinks it was some crazed fan or something trying to get in a few laughs. Anyways, it doesn't really matter now does it? It was well over five years ago."

"I guess, but does it still worry Yakko?" Buster asked.

"As much as I'd like to say no, I'm not sure. In the back of his mind, he's probably still worried about it. I just hope he doesn't go back to the way he was before we left." Suddenly, Wakko spotted his brother starting to return to the table. "Here he comes. Remember, don't say anything about it."

"Right," Babs said. Yakko took his seat.

"Well, think it's about time to get out of here. Where's Bill with the bill?" Yakko chuckled at his own joke. Wakko rolled his eyes.

"Funny." Wakko then spotted a human man walking towards their table. It wasn't a waiter, nor was it the manager. He had a fairly big camera around his neck and a hat.

"Hey, uhh," he said nervously. "I don't mean to bother you, but aren't you the Warners?" Yakko grinned.

"Yep, that's us." He felt his ego rise slightly. It was fairly rare for Yakko to run into such an enthusiastic fan. However, every time he did, he couldn't help but grin.

"Not to pry into your lives, but I thought you guys were... y'know... on bad terms with each other?" As much as it annoyed Yakko, he knew that he had to be nice to the man. After all, as far as everyone else in the world knew, the Warners WERE on bad terms with each other.

"Well, we were, but as you can see we've settled our problems not too long ago."

"Wow! That's great! And you two are Buster and Babs Bunny!" He turned to them with excitement in his eyes.

"That's us!" Babs said. The man grabbed his camera.

"If it's not too much trouble, do you think I could get a picture?" The man asked. Yakko turned to the others. He nodded with them. After all, why the hell not? It wasn't like they were busy or anything.

"Sure," Wakko said. He signaled over to Bill who immediately started heading over. "Do you think you could take a picture?"

"Sure," Bill said.

"Oh, thanks so much!" the man exclaimed. He walked over by the Warners and the Bunnys and looked towards the camera. Yakko smiled as the camera flash temporarily blinded him. He might as well enjoy the moment. It was fairly rare to find such an enthusiastic fan back in Burbank. After all, he knew a lot of his fans personally anyways.

After a while of chatting with the fan, they all chipped in some cash to pay the bill and left the restaurant. Buster and Babs thought about heading home, but decided to stay. After all, Yakko was their ride home and they knew that he wanted to savor every moment that he had with his brother and sister.

---

_Well, it's currently five in the fucking morning, and I'm tired as balls. I'm not 100% happy with how this came out, but eh. It's not terrible. I'm just happy that I was able to get it posted in less than two months. I did enjoy writing this one though. Next chapter is gunna be a crazy one, so stay tuned!_

_Until next chapter folks!_

_-eaglefan101_


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